Apparatus for drawing and severing glass rods or tubing



May .2, 1939. c. A. BROWN ET A1. 2,157,067 APPRATUS FOR DRAWING AND SEVERING GLASS RODS OR TUBING Filed June 21,'1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l May 2, 1939- c. A. BROWN E1- AL 2,157,067

APPARATUS FOR DRAWING AND SEVERING GLASS RODS OR TUBING Filed June 2l, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ;I Hin mule.-

Inventors: Carl Arown, Frank B.\/m Sickle,

7% b9, @guar Automeg.

Patented May 2, 1939 UNITED STATES APPARATUS FOR DRAWING AND SEVERING GLASS RODS R TUBING Carl A. Brown, Chardon, and Frank B. Van Sickle, Lyndhurst, Ohio, assignors to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application June 21, 1934, serial No. 731,662

i3 Claims.

Our invention relates to apparatus for conveying and severing glass and more particularly to apparatus for pulling or drawing glass tube or rod from a forming machine, for instance of the 5. type shOWn in Patent 1,218,598,1ssued March 6, 1917 to Danner, and for severing thereof. The tubing as it comes from the forming machine is still in a highly heated condition and may be easily distorted. One object of our invention is to provide a mechanism associated with the drawing or conveying means for severing the glass body passing therethrough. Anotherobject of our invention is to provide means for causing rotation of the glass body passing throughthe drawingmachine which tends to keep it straight. A salient feature of our machine is that it comprises a pair of driven endless belts which engage opposite sides of the tube and the directions of travel of which are at an angle to each other and to the longitudinal axis of the drawnbody. Another feature is the knives which are incorporated in at least one of the belts and which engage the drawn body at regular intervals. Other features and advantages will appear from the drawings and description which follow of one species of our invention.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a side elevation ofV and associated parts during operation; and Figs.

6 and 7 are top and end views of said head.

The machine shown in the drawings is a specific application of our invention to be used for pulling glass tubing from a forming or drawing machine of the type disclosed in the Danner patent hereinbefore referred to and to the severing thereof. The glass tubing I8 passes between the upper and lower belts i l and i2 and is pulled from right to left. The stationary rests i3, i4 and l5 afford additional support for the tubing. The lower belt l2, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, is composed of a chain i6 and has shoes. i1 carried on long pins i8 and I9. An elongated opening is provided in the shoe for pin i8 so that it does not interfere with the operation of the chain. The upper belt Il as shown in Figs. lsand llis composed of a pair of chains 20 and 2| located adjacent each other which are connected together by sets of long pins 22 and 23 on which the shoes 24 are mounted. To prevent the somewhat plastic i glass-'tube l0 from being marked, pads 25, preferably of woven asbestos, are provided on the shoes of both the upper and lower chains being fastened thereto by the clips 26. The outer edges of the clips 26 are bent inwardly so as to grip vthe pad 25 and the tongues, 21 thereof are bent down un- 5 der the top of the shoe. The lower chain I6 is mounted on sprockets 28 and 29 on hubs 38 and 3l, respectively, which are attached to shafts 32 and 33. 'I'hese shafts turn freely in bracket 34 which supports all the additional mechanism as- 10 sociated with the lower belt and is clamped to the tubular standard 35 (Fig. 2) in the position desired. If it is desired to rotate the glass tubing I0 the bracket 34 is clamped to the standard in a position holding the belt at a slighty angle to the 15 tubing. The upper chains are mounted on pairs of sprockets 36, 31 and 38 mounted on hubs 39, 40 and 4 I, respectively. Hubs 39 and 4I are attached to shafts 42, 43, respectively, which are mounted in bracket 46 whereas hub 48 is mounted rotat- 20 ably on pin 41 in bracket 48. Brackets 46 and 48 are each mounted on standard 35 and may be turned thereabout into the position required and clamped. Bracket 48 is clamped between the threaded collars 49 and 50 on the standard. 25 Bracket 46 also provides support for other mechanism associated with the upper belt and when rotation of the tube I0 is desired, is clamped to the standard in a position to hold the belt at an angle equal to but opposite with reference to the 30 tube to that of the lower belt.

Both the upper and lower belts are driven from the left sprockets 36 and '28, respectively, which are turned indirectly through mechanism within the standard 35. In the case 0f the upper belt, 35 shaft 42 is turned by shaft 5l through bevel gears 52 and 53 meshing together and shaft 5i is driven by shaft 54 (Fig. 2) through gears 55 and 56'. Shaft 54 passes through the standard and is driven by gear 51 meshing with gear 58 on the 40 vertical shaft 59 within said standard. The lower belt is driven by shaft 32 through gears 60 and 6| from shaft 62 which is turned by the tubularshaft 63 located aboutV shaft 59 through bevel gears 84 and 65. Tubular shaft 63 is keyed to 45 shaft 59 and is turned by an external source of power (not shown) through shaft 66. Av bearing is provided for shaft 59 by plug 31 located within the standard.

The glass tubing enters between the shoes of 50 theupper and lower belts which have a definite horizontal path of travel and are causedto grip `the tube by mechanism. associated therewith. The path of travel is set by the upper belt, the rollers 68 of each chain 20 and 2| of which ride en the lower surface of cam 69 and the gripping ac -tion is caused by the upward pressure of the lower belt against the tube. The lower belt is forced upward by staggered rollers 'l0 and 'H on pins I8 and |9, respectively, of the chain i6 which engage the flexibly coupled sections l2 of a track loc-ated therebelow. End sections i3 of the track pivot on pins 14 extending between the guide rails 'l5 and 16 whereas all sections are forced upward by the thrust of rods ll on blocks 18 pivoted in adjacent sections. The edges of the guide rails engage the sides ofthe wider spread rollers 10 of the belt and are provided with inwardly projecting edges which engage the track sections for support thereby keeping them in line. As shown particularly in Fig. 2, rods l1 are each fastened to a pin 19 in a block 18 and are forced upward by spring which is confined between bracket 34 and the fixed collar 8| on said rod ll. The rod operates in a bushing in the bracket 34 and can move upward to the extent allowed by nut 82 and lock nut 83. The upper belt is also supported at intervals by arms 84 which engage through rollers 85 opposite ways 86 in plates 8l in bracket 46. The arms 84 are each clamped to pin 23 of the chain by a block 88 and engage pin 22 through a slot (not shown) therein.

The glass tubing |0 passing between the belts is engaged by knives located at intervals in the upper belt which either score or sever the tube. In this instance, there are three of the knives 89 equally spaced .in Athe belt il, as shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7. The knives are permanently set in a block 90 'and may be of metal such as the cemented tungsten carbide known as "Cai-boloy. As the section of the belt carrying the knife passes into contact with the tubing, the knife is in a raised position and does not contact the glass tube. 'I'he knife block 90 is mounted in slide 9i which rides in ways in slide block 92 and is retained in said slide by the pin 93 passing through rthe slide and by screw 94. In the raised positionl the slide block 92 lies in a similar position in the aperture in the carriage block 95 in which it is located. Four spring 96 which are located between and in apaittures of the carriage block and the bearing caps 91 and 98, attached to said slide block cause said knife to take this position. 'Ihe carriage block 95, as shown in Fig. 7, is mounted on pins 22 and 23 of the chain, the former resting in an aperture therein and the latter being clamped between said block and plate 99 attached by screws (not shown) thereto. 'I'he assembly is held in position by ends of the plate 99 extending beyond the block which engage the chains 20 and' 2| and by upper and lower sets to a set, located on pins |02 in the carriage, and which engage plates 81. On advancing, the knife is brought into engagement with the glass tube by cam |03, located withinan aperture of bracket 46, which engages roller |04 on pin |05 in bearing caps 91 and 98 and which forces the slide block down against the pressure of springs 96. The cam |03 is located below a plurality of springs |06 located at vintervals therealong which are engaged by caps |01 located inthe plug |08 lling the opening in bracket 46. Havingimadecontact with the glass tube the knife ismoved transversely so as to score it. This action is produced by cam. |09 which is clamped to the standard 35 and which engages roller ||0 in slide 9| causing it to move in its ways in slide block 92. The roller 0 is attached to the slide by means of pin and is caused to follow the contour of the cam by spring ||2 which' is located between a pin in the of rollers |0|, four slide and one end of a hollow chain pin through which it passes.

Since the tubing is at a high temperature and the knife is chilled and has its surface preferably wet, the glass tubing is cut completely through or scored so completely as to be easilybroken apart on leaving themachine, A cleancut substantially at right angles to the tube results in either case. The knife is chilled by the circulation of a cooling medium, preferably Water, through passage ii3 in the slide 9| which is fed and emptied by pipes l i4 and l5 screwed into said slide. 'I'he pipes are connected to similar pipes ||6 and in head l i 8 by means of flexible hose |9. The head l 8 is mounted on the end of shaft |20 which is located in bracket |2|-surrounding the standard 35 and distributes the cooling medium in passages |22 and |23 in said shaft to the specific pipes leading lto the three knives. Shaft |20 is turned by a chain |24 extending between sprockets |25- and |26 in a shaft 54 and shaft |20, respectively, so the distributing pipes in the head Hi8 are always in line with the knives and the hose does not get entangled. Passages |22 and H23 in shaft |20 each connect to circular passage l2l and |28, respectively, in bracket |2| which are connected by means of pipes |29 and hose |30 to an external source and drainage for the cooling medium. The knife is wet by engagement with roll |3| (Hg. l) which it engages during rotation 'A breaker wheel such as disclosed by Danner in Patent 1,220,201 may also be provided to break and distribute the tubes if desired.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A machine for severing a glass `body comprising an endless .belt adapted to engage and move said glass body, a knife mounted on and movable with said belt and adapted to engage said glass body and means for moving the knife transversely to the path of travel of and across the surface of the body so that said body is scored.

2. A machine for severing a glass body comprising an endless belt adapted to engage and move said glass body, a carriage mounted on and movable with said belt and adapted to engage said glass body having ways therein transverse to the direction of movement of the belt, a knife mounted in said ways and a cam mounted adjacent the path of travel of the knife and adapted to engage said knife for moving the knife across the glass body to score it.

3. A machine for severing a heated glass body comprising an endless belt adapted to engage and move said glass body, a knife mounted on and movable with said belt and adapted to engage on said belt having ways adapted to assume a position substantially perpendicular to the path of the glass body, a block mounted in said ways having ways therein transverse to the path of travel of the glass body, a knife mounted in the ways of said block, a cam mounted adjacent the path of travel of said carriage and adapted to be engaged by said block for moving the knife into engagement with the glass body, another cam mounted adjacent the path ofgtravel of the block and adapted to be engaged by the knife for mov-A ing it transversely tothe glass body and across the surface thereof so that the body is scored and at least partially severed.

5. A machine for severing a heated glass body comprising an lendless belt adapted to engage and move said glas's body, a knife mounted on and movable with said belt and adapted to engage said body, means for moving said knife transversely to and across the surface of said body to score it, means for wetting the surface of said knife comprising a wetted rollerdisposed adjacent to the path of said knife and means for moving said knife into engagement with said roller.

6. A machine for severing a heated glass body comprising an endless belt adapted to engage and move said glass body, a knife mounted on and movable with said belt and .adapted to engage said body,V ,means for moving said knife trans'- versely to and across the surface of said body to score it, means for chilling said knife and means for also wetting the surface of said knife comprising a wetted roller disposed adjacent to the path of said knife and means for moving said knife into engagement with, said roller.

7. A machine for severing a glass body comprising a pair of endless belts engaging opposite sides of the glass body and adapted to advance said body, a knife mounted on and movable with one of said belts and adapted to engage said body, means for moving said knife transversely to and across the surface of said body to score it, means for continuously circulating cooling liquid around said knife to chill it and means for wetting the surface of said knife. 8. A machine forsevering a heated glass body comprising an endless belt adapted to engage said glass body and move therewith, a carriage mounted on said belty and movable therewith, a knife movably mounted in said carriage, means for moving said knife perpendicularly to the path of the glass body and into. engagement therewith, and means for moving said knife transversely to the glass body and across the surface thereoftoA score it. y

9. A machir for pulling glass tubing comprising a pair of endless belts having the surfaces of longitudinally adjacent portions in parallel planes and adapted to engage opposite sides of said glass tubing, said belts being mounted so that the said longitudinally adjacent surfaces are at an angle to each other whereby the glass tubing is advancedand rotated by the movement of the belts, a knife mounted on and movable with one of said ing a pair of endless belts having the surfaces of longitudinally adjacent portions in parallel planes and adapted to engage opposite sides of said glass tubing, said belts being mounted so that the said longitudinally adjacent surfaces are at an angle to each other whereby the glass tubing is advanced and rotated by the movement of the belts, a knife mounted on and movable with one of said belts, means for moving said knife to engage and score said glass tubing, and means for continuously circulating a cooling liquid around said knife to chill it.

11. A machine for pulling glass tubing comprising a pair of endless belts having the surfaces of longitudinally adjacent portions in parallel planes and adapted to engage opposite sides of said glass tubing, said belts being mounted so that the said longitudinally adjacent surfaces are at an angle to each other whereby the glass tubing is advanced and rotated by the moving of the belts, a knife mounted on and movable with one of said belts, means for moving said knife to engage and score said glass tubing, means for chilling said knife, and means for also wetting the surface of said knife.

12. A machine for severing glass tubing comprising an endless belt adapted to engage and move said tubing longitudinally, a carriage mounted on' said belt, a block slidably mounted in said carriage so as to be movable perpendicularly toward and away from the path of said tubing, a knife'slidably mounted in said block so as to be movable transversely of the path of said tubing, a' cam mounted adjacent the path of travel of said ,carriage for engaging said block and moving the said knife into engagement with the tubing, and another,y cam mounted adjacent the path of travel of said block for engaging said knife and moving it transversely of the tubing across the surface thereof so that the said tubing is scored and at least partially severed.

13. A machine for pulling glass tubing comprising a vertically disposed column, upper 4and lower brackets mounted on said column, an endless belt mounted on each of said brackets so as to rotate in a substantially vertical plane, portions of said belts being longitudinally adjacent each other and adapted to engage opposite sides of the glass tubing, means for driving said belts to advance said tubing therebetween in a substantially horizontal plane, said brackets being 

